Animal cruelty cases per county

Meath had the highest number of animal cruelty cases while Longford and Mayo had none

There have been 25 cases of animal cruelty prosecuted since 2014.

Meath had the highest number of animal cruelty cases while Longford and Mayo had none

On Tuesday Minister Creed revealed the number of cases that had been initiated and prosecuted under the Animal Health and Welfare Act since 2014.

The numbers showed that Meath had the highest number with 12 cases initiated since 2014, with 9 of these cases prosecuted and taken to court.

In contrast Mayo and Longford did not have a single case initiated or prosecuted since 2014.

The Animal Health and Welfare Act was introduced in 2013 and since 2014 a total of 74 cases have been initiated and 25 have been prosecuted. There have been 10 cases initiated in 2017 to date.

However, Minister Creed pointed out that enforcement in relation to cases of animal cruelty was often a ‘complex issue’ and stated that a key element of the act was that it allowed the authorities to intervene early in a case of suspected animal cruelty. This early intervention permitted by the act helped to prevent many cases from escalating.